Mechanical movement.



0. E. MCMEANS & C. A. TRlPP. MECHANICAL MOVEMENT.

APPLICATION FILED JULYZO. IQIY. 1,271,917. Patented July 9,1918.

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O. E. McMEANS & C. A. TRIPP.

MECHANICAL MOVEMENT.

APPLICATION HLED JULYZO. 1917.

1 271,9 1 '7. Patented July 9, 1918.

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ORANGE-E. MOMEANS AND CHARLES A. TRIPP, OIE INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA, ASSIGNORS TO lIOLG'OlVICB &.HOKE MEG. C0,, OF INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA, A CORPORATION OF INDIANA;

Specification of Letters Patent.

MECHANICAL MOVEMENT.

Patented July 9, 1918.

Divided and. this application filed July 20,

1.9.1.7v Serial No. 181,8 8.

To allevhom it may concern."

Be it known that W8,'ORANGE E. MoMnANs and CHARLEs A. TRIPP, citizens of the United States, residing at Indianapolis, in the county of Marion and State of Indiana, have invented new and useful Mechanical Movements, of which the following is a specification.

It is the object of our invention to produce ainechanical movement whereby oscillation may be produced coupledwith aprogressive' advance; or an oscillation in which the movements in one direction are greater than those in the'other so that the total movement is an advancing one. To have made our in vention particularly for use in corn-popping machines, whereby the corn may be kept in. continuous agitation during popping by a back-and-forth movement with a progresslve advance, and also whereby a mechanism is obtained which by its movements attracts and interests the passer=by.

Our present'invention is adivision of our copending application SenN'o; 135,921, filed December 9,1916.

The accompanying drawings illustrate our invention in connection with'the corn-popping machine shown in the aforesaid apPlication. Figure 1 1s a partialplan view of 'such a corn-popping machme, embodying our invention, showing only so much of the corn-popping machine as cooperates directly with the mechanical movement which forms the subject-matter of this application; Fig. 2 is a partial side elevation of the upper part of such corn-popping machine, also illustrating our invention in connection therewith; Fig. v8 is a vertical central section through that part of the corn-popping machine containing the element which is oscillated with a progressive advance by our mechanical movement; and Fig. 4 is a detail section on the line 434 of Fig. 1, showing the cooperation: of the pawl and ratchet of our mechanical movement.

The popping apparatus, so far as is essential to an understanding of the application of the present invention thereto, consists of a popping plate 10 hung by a suitable frame '11 from the top 12 of a suitable casing, conveniently having glass sides 13 to display the apparatus, and a stirring mechanism consisting of blades 14 mounted on a suitably journaled vertical shaft 15 and movable with an oscillating movement having a progressive advance by our mechanical movement, this stirring mechanism being mounted within a cage 16 which is also driven, in a manner not essential to the present invention, from the shaft 15. The oscillation of the stirring mechanism keeps in agitation the corn to be popped, resting on the popping plate 10, and carries such corn around on such plate, withinthe cage 16, from a point of corn feed, to which the corn is-fed from a suitable hopper 17, toa point of discharge, the speed of rotation'being proper to produce the desired popping of the corn as it is carried around from feed point-to discharge point.

In order to obtain the oscillation of the stirring mechanism, with a continuous forward advance, the vertical shaft 15 has fixed upon it near its upper-end a worm wheel 18, and loosely mounted above this worm wheel is an oscillating member 19. This oscillating member 19 is suitably oscillated from any desired source of power, with a uniform oscillation having equal back-and-forth movements. As shown, it is connected for this purpose by a link 20 to an eccentric 21 on a shaft 22 suitably driven from an electric motor 23, the link 20 having \a suitable universal mounting because of the movement of the member 19 about a different axis from the axis of the shaft 22. The oscillating memher 19 operates the feed mechanism 24, which controls the feed from the hopper 17 of the corn to be popped. The details ofthis feed mechanism are not essential to the present invention.

A horizontal shaft 25 is mounted in suitable bearings in the oscillating member 19,

and is providedwith a worm 26 meshing with the worm wheel 18. The shaft 25 at one end also carries a ratchet wheel 27 which cooperates with a pawl 28 pivoted on a bracket 29 mounted on the casing top 12.

lVhen the oscillating member 19 swings in a counter-clockwise direction (Fig. 1) the ratchet wheel 27 passes under the pawl 28 and one of its teeth is engaged by such pawl to turn the shaft 25 through a definite angle, thus through the worm 26 and worm wheel 18 turning the vertical shaft 15 slightly within the oscillating member 19. The pawl 28 rises as the next tooth of the ratchet wheel 27 passes under it upon the reverse (or clockwise) movement of the oscillating member 19, and is provided with a tail 30 cooperating with a finger 31 on the bracket 29 to permit its rising and to prevent it from dropping too far.

The oscillating member 19-and shaft move together save for this slight relative movement upon each complete oscillation when the ratchet Wheel 27 and pawl 28 engage. Thus the shaft turns alternately in opposite directions, but with a greater angular movement in one direction (clockwise in Fig. 3) than in the other, for such clockwise movement is for the full angular movement of the oscillating member 19, and the counter-clockwise movement is slightly less than that because of the action of the pawl 28 on the ratchet wheel 27. The arrangement of the pawl 28 and ratchet wheel 27 and that of the worm 26 and Worm wheel 18 are such that when the ratchet wheel is turned by the pawl the movement of the shaft 15 in its bearings is lessened and not increased, so that the progressive advance is superposed on the oscillation with a 33V. ing of energy in the operation of the stirring mechanism. 7 i

By this means, the shaft 15 and the blades 14 carried thereby and forming the stirring mechanism are oscillated, or moved alters nately in opposite directions, but the movement in one direction is always greater 'than that; in the other direction, so that thereis a progressive advance in addition to the 0s-- cillating, whereby the corn to be popped is carried around over the popping plate 10 from the point of feed to the point of discharge. The operation is a continuous one, and there may be corn on the popping plate 10 in all stages ofwthe popping process, in the pockets formed between the different blades 14.

We claim as our invention 1'. In combination, a rotatable shaft, a worm wheel fixed on said shaft, an oscillatmember loose on said shaft, a worm carried by said oscillating member and meshing "with said worm wheel, and means operated bythe oscillation of said oscillating member independently of said Worm wheel for turning said Worm. V p a 2. In combination, a rotatable shaft, a Worm Wheel fiXed on said shaft, an oscillating member looseon saidshaft, a Worm car- Copie; of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of -1atents.

with said worm and also carriedby said oscillating member, and a pawl which is engaged by said ratchet Wheel to produceturning thereof and of the worm upon the osc'il- Y lations of said oscillating member.

In combination, a rotatable shaft, a

ing member loose on said shaft, a Worm carried by said oscillating member and meshing with said worm wheel, and means operated independently of said worm wheel for producing turning of said worm in the direction to reduce the movement of the rotatable shaft upon the movements of said oscillating member in one direction only. 7

4. In combination, a rotatable shaft, a worm wheel fixed on said shaft, an oscillating menrber loose on said shaft, a worm carried by said oscillating member and meshing with said worm wheel, and means operated independently of said Worm wheel for producing turning of said worm upon the moveinents of said oscillating member in one direction only.

5. In combination, a rotatable shaft, a

worm wheel fixed on said shaft, anjoperating member loose on said shaft, .a worm carried by saidoscillating member and meshing with'said worm wheel, and means for producing turning of said worm upon a part only of the movement of said oscillating member in one direction, said worm being free from actuation by said means during the remainder of the movement of said oscillating member.

, 6; In combination, a rotatable nine hundred and seventeen.

.ORANGE E. MoME ANS.

CHARLES A. TRIPP.

Washington, D. 0.

. shaft, aworm'wheel fixed on said shaft ,.'an operab' worm wheelfiXed on said shaft, an oscillat- 

